§ 23-179. Same—City of Key West.

(a)

Pursuant to the provision of F.S. § 125.0108, there is hereby levied and imposed a tourist impact tax within the area of the county designated as an area of critical state concern by F.S. § 380.0552 and F.A.C. ch. 28-36 upon the privileges and in the amount described in subsections (b) and (c) of this section.

(b)

Every person who rents, leases, or lets for consideration any living quarters or accommodations in any hotel, apartment hotel, motel, resort motel, apartment, apartment motel, rooming house, mobile home park, recreational vehicle park, or condominium for a term of six months or less, unless such establishment is exempt from the tax imposed by F.S. § 212.03 is exercising a taxable privilege on the proceeds therefrom under this section.

(c)

The tourist impact tax shall be levied at the rate of one percent of each dollar and major fraction thereof of the total consideration charged for such taxable privilege. When receipt of consideration is by way of property other than money, the tax shall be levied and imposed on the fair market value of such nonmonetary consideration.

(d)

The tourist impact tax shall be in addition to any other tax imposed pursuant to Laws of Fla. ch. 212, and in addition to all other taxes and fees and the consideration for the taxable privilege.

(e)

The tourist impact tax shall be charged by the person receiving the consideration for the taxable privilege, and it shall be collected from the lessee, tenant, or customer at the time of payment of the consideration for such taxable privilege.

(f)

The tourist impact tax shall be collected and administered as follows:

(1)

Pursuant to the provisions of F.S. § 125.0104(10), the county shall collect and administer the tourist impact tax locally. Initial collection of the tax shall continue to be made in the same manner as the tax imposed under F.S. ch. 212. The county tax collector shall be responsible for the collection and administration of the tax. A person receiving the consideration for rental or lease payments shall receive, account for, and remit the tax thereon to the county tax collector at the time and in the manner provided for persons who collect and remit taxes under F.S. § 212.03. The same duties and privileges imposed by F.S. ch. 212, upon dealers in tangible property respecting the remission and collection of tax, the making of returns, the keeping of books, records and accounts, and payment of a dealer's credit, and compliance with the rules of the county tax collector in the administration of such chapter shall apply to and be binding upon all persons who are subject to the provisions of this article; provided, however, the county tax collector may authorize a quarterly return and payment when the tax remitted by the person receiving the consideration for such rental or lease for the preceding quarter did not exceed $25.00.

(2)

Pursuant to F.S. § 125.0104, the county tax collector shall keep records showing the amount of taxes collected. These records shall be open to the public during the regular office hours of the county tax collector, subject to the provisions of F.S. § 213.052.

(3)

Collections received by the county tax collector from the tax, less costs of administration of this section, shall be paid and returned, on a monthly basis to the county clerk of the governing board of the county, for use by the county in accordance with the provision of this section.

(4)

The county tax collector is authorized to employ persons and incur other expenses to administer this section.

(5)

The county tax collector may promulgate such rules and may prescribe and publish such forms as may be necessary to effectuate the purpose of this section.

(6)

The county tax collector shall perform the enforcement and audit functions associated with the collection and remission of this tax, including, without limitation, the following:

a.

For the purposes of enforcing the collection of the tax levied by this section, the tax collector is hereby specifically authorized and empowered to examine, at all reasonable hours, the books, records and other documents of all dealers, or other persons charged with the duty to report or pay a tax under this section, in order to determine whether they are collecting the tax or otherwise complying with this section. In the event such dealer refuses to permit such examination of its books, records, or other documents by the tax collector as aforesaid, it is guilty of an offense. The tax collector shall have the right to proceed in circuit court to seek a mandatory injunction or other appropriate remedy to enforce its right against the offender, as granted by this section, to require an examination of the books and records of such dealer.

b.

Each dealer shall secure, maintain and keep for a period of three years, a complete record of rooms or other lodging, leased or rented by the dealer, together with gross receipts from such sales, and other pertinent records and papers as may be required by the county tax collector for the reasonable administration of this section and all such records that are located or maintained in this state shall be open for inspection by the tax collector at reasonable hours at such dealer's place of business located in the county. Any dealer who maintains such books and records at a point outside the county must make such books and records available for inspection by the tax collector in the county. Any dealer subject to the provisions of this section who violates these provisions is guilty of an offense.

c.

Notification of an audit shall be sent in accordance with the following:

1.

The tax collector shall send written notification, at least 60 days prior to the date an auditor is scheduled to begin an audit. The tax collector is not required to give 60 days' prior notification of a forthcoming audit in any instance in which the taxpayer requests an emergency audit.

2.

Such written notification shall contain:

(i)

The approximate date on which the auditor is scheduled to begin the audit;

(ii)

A reminder that all records, receipts, invoices, and related documentation of the taxpayer must be made available to the auditor; and

(iii)

Any other request or suggestions the tax collector may deem necessary.

3.

Only records, receipts, invoices and related documentation that are available to the auditor when such audit begins shall be deemed acceptable for the purposes of conducting such audit.

d.

All taxes collected under this section shall be remitted to the county tax collector. In addition to criminal sanctions, the tax collector is empowered, and it shall be his duty, when any tax becomes delinquent or is otherwise in jeopardy under this section, to issue a warrant for the full amount of the tax due, or estimated to be due, with the interest, penalties and cost of collection, directed to all and singular sheriffs of the state, and shall record the warrant in the public records of the county; and thereupon the amount of the warrant shall become a lien of any real property or personal property of the taxpayer in the same manner as a recorded judgment.

e.

The tax collector may issue a tax execution to enforce the collection of taxes imposed by this article and deliver it to the sheriff. The sheriff shall thereupon proceed the same manner as prescribed by law for executions and shall be entitled to the same fees for his services in executing the warrant to be collected. The tax collector may also have a writ of garnishment to subject any indebtedness due to the delinquent dealer by a third person in any goods, money, chattels, or effects of the delinquent dealer in the hands, possession, or control of the third person in the manner provided by law for the payment of the tax due. Upon payment of the execution, warrant, judgment, or garnishment, the tax collector shall satisfy the lien of record within 30 days.

(7)

Tax revenues may be used only in accordance with the provisions of F.S. § 125.0108.

(8)

An amount not to exceed three percent of the tax collected herein shall be retained for the costs of administration. The amount deducted for costs of administration shall be used only for those costs that are solely and directly attributable to auditing, assessing and enforcing payment of delinquent taxes authorized by this section. The remainder of the tax collected shall be remitted to the county on a monthly basis.

(9)

The county assumes responsibility for the records and accounts of dealers and assessing, collecting and enforcing payment of delinquent tourist impact taxes. The county adopts any and all powers and authority granted to the state in F.S. § 124.0104(10) and F.S. ch. 212 and as further incorporated therein to determine the amount of the tax, penalties, and interest to be paid by each dealer and to enforce payment of such tax, penalties, and interest by, but not limited to, distress warrants, writ of garnishments and criminal penalties as provided in F.S. ch. 212.

(g)

All tax revenues received by the county pursuant to this section shall be distributed as follows:

(1)

Fifty percent shall be transferred to the county land authority to be created by ordinance, the same to be used to purchase property in the area described in subsection (a) of this section. An amount not to exceed five percent may be used for administration and other costs incident to such purchases; and

(2)

Fifty percent shall be distributed to the board of county commissioners, to be deposited in the general fund of the county. Such proceeds shall be used for ad valorem tax containment.

(h)

Any person who is taxable hereunder who fails or refuses to charge and collect from the person paying for the taxable privilege the tax herein provided, either by himself or through his agents or employees, is, in addition to being personally liable for the payable for the payment of the tax, guilty of a misdemeanor of the second degree, punishable as provided in F.S. §§ 775.082, 775.083 and 775.084.

(i)

No person shall advertise or hold out to the public in any manner, directly or indirectly, that he will absorb all or any part of the tax, that he will relieve the person paying for the taxable privilege of the payment of all or any part of the tax, or that the tax will not be added to the consideration for the taxable privilege or, when added, that it or any part thereof will be refunded or refused, either directly or indirectly, by any method whatsoever. Any person who willfully violates any provision of this subsection is guilty of a misdemeanor of the second degree, punishable as provided in F.S. § 775.082, F.S. § 775.083, or F.S. § 775.084.

(j)

The tax authorized to be levied by this section shall constitute a lien on the property of the business, lessee, customer, or tenant in the same manner as and shall be collectible as are, liens authorized and imposed in F.S. § 713.67, F.S. § 713.68, and F.S. § 713.69.

(Code 1979, § 2-572; Ord. No. 12-1988, §§ 1—10; Ord. No. 48-1995, § 1; Ord. No. 017-2014, §§ 3, 4 )